Welcome to my blog! The title "To Train Up a Mother" refers to the profound effects our children have on us, and how as we set out to "Train them up in the way they should go"...we find just how much God wants to teach us through them! These are my daily musings; a young mother to seven little souls on loan, how I've been so blessed by opening my heart to His plan and gift of CHILDREN, and...how I'm being totally transformed along the way.

AUTHOR PROFILE

More about us...

About the Author

I'm Liz, wife to Brian, and a homeschooling Momma to our seven wonderful children. We believe that children REALLY ARE a GIFT from the Lord, and have been blessed incredibly by trusting HIM with the number and timing of these gifts, trusting Him to provide financially, spiritually, emotionally and practically in the raising of them. We also homeschool them(sometimes more in theory than practice! haaaa!)
I was born and raised in Skagit Valley, WA. and met my amaaaazing better half Brian, at the tender age of fifteen. By seventeen,I didn't see any point in refusing his proposals any longer! We were engaged in October of my senior year of highschool, invited the whole school to our great big happy wedding,got hitched the friday night before Spring break. (Now that's the way to do Spring break ;)
We both always knew we wanted a lot of kids, but our conviction to actually release the timing and number of that to their Creator, came graaaadually.
My big "15 minutes of fame" came this January when I gave birth to my seventh, a little daughter Juliet Mercy, in the passenger seat of the family van while driving to the hospital. (Don't miss the news clip on that one!)

My Shelfari Bookshelf

What flower are you?

Does this seem right people??? I'm so confused!

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Thursday, March 27, 2008

No Small Potatoes in Parenting

Today (at Gemma's request), I was gathered with all my sweet younguns excitedly around the computer, poised to take the exciting Lord of the Rings Personality tests. Most of said sweet young children were quite predictably just bursting with hope that they'd turn out to be the lovely Arowen...the brave Aragorn, Legolas......or even perhaps the funny hobbits...

...except for one child. He, with the most disturbingly hopeful yet honest face blurted out:

"Oh! I just hope I'm Smeagol!!!"

and we...like usual, assumed he was cracking one of his jokes with only a little fear that he might be serious. It became more disturbing when he began answering questions very Smeagol like...and yet...honestly very Silas like. So alarmingly (yet honestly) alike were the answers that none of us could fault him for rigging the thing...

When asked if he was loyal, his reply was:"Yeah...I'm pretty much ah....not that loyal at all cuz none of the kids twusts me even when I pwomise...it's bucuz I always bweak so many promises"

When asked if he was noble: it was"Nope! And I don't even know what that IS!" (which, in and of itself answers a big NEGATIVE to the next question on whether he is "wise" or not.)

When asked if he "likes to meddle in other people's affairs" he didn't hesitate to say with a teeny reassuring glimmer of remorse:

"Yeeah...I'm pretty much a meddler cuz I like to spy and get into all of the girlses stufffff..."

And that little reassuring glimmer was the last bit of hope when asked if he was afraid of the dark, and he hesitated a bit before saying:

"Weoll...some of the time I'm afwaid of the dark...but some of the time...I....love it!"

The torture went on, when asked if he was proud, mischievous and secretive, he answered again and again "yes", "yes" and unfortunately yet again.....yes. (would this torture ever stop? thought his poor disturbed mother)Fiery Temper? Affirmative. All are in agreement on this as well.

Really, the only "no" that I can think of was in answer to the question "Are you willing to accept responsibility?" Oh wait...I guess that's still not-- (gulp).

And then came the question we were all so sure clenched the deal. It was to choose his favorite food out of the following four: 1)Lembas, 2)mushrooms, 3)Stewed rabbit with herbs, or 4)Ale. There was no question in our minds, and he certainly did let us down when he (with spit a flyin), shrieked out:

"Oh MEAT! Definitely MEAT! I love meat even more than BEER!"

And with that, all the Kirkman household, fully expected the following face to pop up on the screen as Mommy clicked for the results:

But alas, with some seeming computer gliche...like some merciful internet miracle from the heavens...

like a direct ray of hope to a tortured mother from the Almighty Himself......

we all gasped in shock!

For...

what could this mean? There must be some kind of mistake!

I wouldn't go so far as to say he was disgusted, but Silas was certainly not pleased. He said something like: "Awwww DANE-IT!" and walked disapointedly away. After the excitement died down, this perplexed mother was left to grapple with the turn of events... when it finally hit me. Yes! That must be it! Just moments before Silas took his own test, his big brother, his best friend in the world...and quite simply his hero...Elijah (I know, how appropriate)

had tested to be none else than FRODO BAGGINS!!!

And now it all makes sense. Sam Gamgee used to be a real rascal before he had to buck it up and help Frodo save Middle Earth. It's really funny actually. My little rascal Silas hasn't read the books or seen the Lord of the Rings movies yet to even know that Sam turns out to be the real hero in the end. It may have been that ONE blessed virtue of bravery that Silas scored on the test (because he sure bombed out on the "loyalty"!) Or maybe it's the fact that loyalty has nothing to do with the supporting cast, and everything to do with the main character.

Silas in general, is not a loyal kid (yet). But... he is loyal to his truest friend Mr. Eli. And like Samwise the Brave and the others, he simply won't be able to resist following one who would lay down his own life for those he loves. Or namely, The One who already did. It's that same sort of irresistable grace that has hold of him I think. The end is already determined for this kid and He will grow to understand who is his truest, closest friend and hero. (thank God!) My little Silas will surprise himself and everyone else in epic proportions, except for the one who laid down His life even before he set Silas' little rascally life in motion.

And Jesus (our main character) said:

13"Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. 14 You are my friends if you do what I command. 15 I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master's business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. 16 You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit--fruit that will last. Then the Father will give you whatever you ask in my name. 17 This is my command: Love each other"

~John 15:13-17

We love, because He first loved us ~1 John 4:19

Keep on loving your own little hobbits Mommas. The greatest heroes are born out of crazy, happy little shires like ours. :)